"Do not be afraid, little flock"

I reread the Following Jesus chapter this morning for the third time, and this line stuck out to me once again: "We cherish fear so closely that we find we cannot shed it even when we're told to do so" (page 66).

Fear becomes such a security blanket in itself - we feel the need to tense up, as if to brace ourselves for whatever may be around the corner. It's as if letting our guard down for a minute would open us up to a whole slough of new fears and dangers.

But I've been offered this gift of freedom from fear - why don't I take it?